Scammed 49ers Fans Get Free Super Bowl Tickets After Losing $6K

The story of a San Francisco couple, die-hard 49ers fans, who were scammed out of nearly $6,000 for non-existent Super Bowl tickets, has a happy ending: They're going to Sunday's big game after all.

Bay Area residents Sharon Osgood and her boyfriend wired $5,900 to a Baltimore Ravens fan in exchange for four tickets – a fair price considering the $3,000/seat going rate – but received an empty FedEx package with no tickets and taunting messages all over the package like "Enjoy the game!!!! Go Ravens!!! LOL."

Ticketmaster chief executive Nathan Hubbard found out about the scam and called Osgood to offer her four free tickets for her, her boyfriend, and two family members. Hubbard also arranged for Osgood and her partner to have breakfast with NFL legend Troy Aikman, according to the Mercury News.

Before they knew about Hubbard's offer, the 49ers front office called with its own free-ticket offer. Now they have five seats, none of which are nosebleeds.

"My heart literally was in my throat; it was fluttering – I was like, 'Oh my God, I can't believe this is happening.' I can't put into words how grateful I am," Osgood, a 49-year-old utility worker, said, tearing up.

Osgood has been a season-ticket holder at Candlestick Park for four years.

After emailing, texting and talking with the seller they met on Craigslist on the phone for a week, they wired the money to his credit union and received the package on Monday.

The scam artist told the couple he was a corporate tax attorney living in Boca Raton, Fla., and his wife was eight months pregnant, which was why they couldn't go to the game, according to the Mercury News.

"I wish I could tell you that we don't hear this story a lot, but we do," Hubbard told the Mercury News. "There are a lot of places that fans go to buy tickets that aren't safe, and they get completely exploited."

Osgood filed a police report, but it's unclear what will happen with the investigation.

Despite Craigslist urging users not to wire funds, scams like these still happen.